Gourmet Gaming

Chapter 311: Juicy Drink

“Yeah!!! Don’t fight! Good people should be close to each other!!!” Conir said with a wide and bright smile on his face, nodding furiously at his own words. Mei Wei smiled softly at the boy when she saw him acting like this.

‘Only once.’

Although Mei Wei told Conir that she would protect his Hyung no matter what, she only intended to help him to the best of her abilities once. Only once, when he needed her help the most. Minhyuk’s words had healed the wounds in Mei Wei’s heart to some extent. Of course, the words came from Conir’s mouth, but his words were still deep and meaningful for her. And, this was a favor that Conir asked of her. It was already surprising enough that the world’s number one player, Mei Wei, was willing to help someone else.

Then, Conir said, “Conir is giving Conir's Princess Syndrome Noona the most delicious ramyeon in the world!”

A small, yet warm, light enveloped the bowl of ramyeon in Conir’s hands, one that he personally made for her. Mei Wei sat down in front of the it and closed her eyes, trying to control her breathing.

‘Will… I… be able… to eat it?’

Mei Wei was a person that vomited just at the sight of food. So, she had quite a lot of concerns. Just then, she recalled the words that Conir had told her, ‘It’s not your fault. It’s not your fault. The part that you’re uncomfortable with will be nothing if I help you.’

That was right. It was not her fault. The corners of her lips curled lightly. What happened was not her fault. It was simply an unfortunate accident. Then, she slowly opened her eyes and stared at the piping hot ramyeon. She saw the chewy noodles inside the red soup, the chopped green onions on top of it, and the well-boiled whites and yolk of the egg. Mei Wei grabbed her spoon and slowly lifted it to her mouth to taste the soup first. Then, something surprising happened.

‘I don’t feel nauseous…?’

Mei Wei knew that anorexia was some sort of mental illness. The longer this mental illness stayed with her, the more her stomach began to reject the food in front of her. But right now, she was not feeling any repulsion at all.

“Slurp!”

The hot and spicy ramyeon soup entered her mouth as she took a small sip from her spoon.

‘Deli… cious…’?Mei Wei thought, her heart was overcome with emotions. She felt that this was right. Food was not a bad thing. It was something that could make people happy. The smile lingered in her lips as she picked up her chopsticks and clamped on some noodles.

“Sluuuuuurp!”

Mei Wei picked a piece of kimchi and ate it with the chewy noodles.

Crunch, crunch, crunch―

The sweet and sour taste of the kimchi spread pleasantly in her mouth, as she took a bite of the well-cooked egg. She said, “Delicious. It’s really delicious, Conir.”

“Conir! That’s good!!!”

Mei Wei ate the bowl of ramyeon in front of her in a hurry. However, before she took another bite of the noodles, she said, “Boss, can I have some cold rice over here?”

“Yes~” Conir answered cheerfully, bringing some cold rice over.

Mei Wei had always liked mixing some cold rice in her ramyeon when there were still some noodles left in her bowl. She mixed the rice well before pressing it down with her spoon. Then, she scooped a spoonful, complete with rice, soup and noodles, and lifted it to her mouth.

‘It’s really delicious…’

The combination of ramyeon and cold rice was the best of the best. She lifted the entire bowl and finished everything, down to the very last drop. Then, she heard the notification that her skills’ level had increased by one, but she did not pay it any mind. It did not matter to her.

‘The first… step…’?

Mei Wei was finally able to take the first step in treating her anorexia.

“How was it?”

“This is really the most delicious ramyeon in the world. Thank you, Conir,” she smiled softly as she answered Conir.

Just like that, Conir’s business quest had ended. Mei Wei had only made a bit of progress, but she was still not yet completely cured. She still needed to meet with Minhyuk.

“Shall we go and meet your Hyung?”

“Yeah!”

Conir had grown close to Mei Wei. That was why he believed and trusted her. Besides, Mei Wei had told him that she would become friends with Minhyuk and protect him. So, he took out a parchment.

‘Vassal’s Tracking Parchment.’

The Vassal’s Tracking Parchment was an item that could only be used by a vassal with a master. This parchment would allow the vassal to track and check the location of their master. Then, Conir tore the Vassal’s Tracking Parchment.

[You have torn the Vassal’s Tracking Parchment.]

[Checking Minhyuk’s location.]

***

After exploiting the four legendary figures and over a thousand residents of the territory, Minhyuk heard the trial completion notification in just over a week.

[You have successfully harvested all of the withering fruits.]

[The power of Eden, the Mother of Life, has seeped through all of Atlas territory.]

[The weakened Small World Tree is now being revived.]

Flash―

Soon, the withering leaves on the giant World Tree located in the center of the Atlas territory disappeared, and young green leaves began sprouting in place.

[More than 20~30 vegetables and fruits planted in Atlas territory will grow to S~SS rank in thirty days.]

[The growth rate of all seeds planted in Atlas territory will double.]

[Once all the seeds planted in the Atlas territory bear fruit, the fruits will acquire E~SS rank special power.]

[All of the crops that will grow from the seeds planted in Atlas territory will always taste delicious regardless of seasons.]?

[Beautiful flowering trees will grow in Atlas territory that will boost and revitalize the energy of the residents of the territory.]

[In the future, residents of Atlas territory will experience a +4% recovery effect.]

[Legendary Farmer Bran has permanently become a resident of Atlas territory. He will manage and maintain the farming system in the territory.]

[Minhyuk, the person who holds the ownership of Atlas territory, will receive a gift.]

[You have gained 500 REP.]

[You have gained 300 DEX.]

[You have achieved a high score and awakened Atlas territory’s power as the City in the Sky.]

[You have achieved a high score. You can now choose to take another trial.]

[You have completed the Territory Quest: Remove the crops that gnaw on the roots of the World Tree.]

[You have acquired the Small World Tree’s mysterious fruit.]

The Small World Tree flashed brightly. The bright light condensed into a sphere and floated in front of Minhyuk before falling down. The light disappeared, replaced by a fruit the moment Minhyuk reached out. The fruit was shining with a variety of colors.

‘Is this the mysterious fruit?’

Minhyuk’s smile was bright and wide as he washed the fruit clean with water. The fruit had thin skin, similar to an apple and was about twice the size of a regular apple too.

‘I can probably eat it as it is, right?’

Minhyuk took a big bite out of the fruit.

Crunch―

His first bite tasted sweet and refreshing.

‘It tastes like an apple?’

On his second bite…

‘Huh? Now, it tastes like pear?’

Crunch, crunch―

This time, it tasted like those refreshingly cool and sweet pear freshly taken out from the refrigerator. On Minhyuk’s third bite…

‘Oriental melon?’

It tasted like sweet oriental melon. He could even feel the seeds whenever he chewed. There were obviously no seeds in the fruit at all, but he felt the sensations of chewing on the melon and its seeds together.

“Ho― It really is mysterious!!!”

Minhyuk was amazed at the sweet and deep flavor of the fruits that he tasted with every bite. Finally, the flavor of soft peach appeared on his last bite. He said, “Yeah. That’s right. Peaches should be soft, not hard. It tastes sweeter like that.”

Minhyuk found the fruit extremely delicious that he ended up eating everything, even the stem! Then, notifications rang loudly the moment he finished eating the fruit.

[You have eaten the Small World Tree’s mysterious fruit.]

[You have gained 30,000,000 EXP.]

[You have leveled up.]

[You have leveled up.]

[You have leveled up.]

[You have leveled up.]

[You have leveled up.]

[You have leveled up.]

[You have leveled up… omitted]

Eleven consecutive level-up notifications rang in his ears. Minhyuk smiled in satisfaction at the notifications. Then, he turned his attention towards the ‘City in the Sky’.

‘Wow…’

With this power, Atlas territory could literally become a city in the sky. The owner of the territory could choose to let the city fly if he so desired. Of course, there was a time limit. The territory could only fly for six hours the moment it rose in the air. This power made it possible to relocate the territory to any place that they wanted and was also a very useful power in war. After he finished checking his notifications, Minhyuk immediately chose his next trial.

[You have chosen the trial of the Sword and Shield.]

The trial that Minhyuk deemed was necessary for the territory’s growth right after Eden’s trial was none other than the Sword and Shield’s trial. Having a strong military power meant that they would have enough power to protect the territory. But before he could start the trial, something unexpected appeared.

[Hidden Piece. The One who Achieved Eden’s Impossible Territory Test.]

[The Food God’s Hidden Trial might appear depending on your next trial’s achievement level.]

[If you successfully complete the hidden trial, you will be able to receive additional rewards.]

[The owner of Atlas territory will be able to receive the beef ribeye, chuck flap tail and hanging tender that the Food God had personally acquired from Heaven’s God Runia’s farm.]

‘Gasp…! Wh…what?!’?Minhyuk thought, hands and body shaking in excitement.

‘Beef from Heaven’s God Runia’s farm? Even the ingredient list is shocking! Rib eye, chuck flap tail and hanging tender?’

At that moment, Crusoe approached him and said, “Now, the next trial…”

“Place a piece of chuck flap tail on top of a grill. Grill it exactly for seven to ten seconds then flip it. After that, pick it up and dip it in salt…”

Chew, chew, chew!

Minhyuk’s mouth moved unknowingly. Crusoe looked at Minhyuk in confusion when he saw him suddenly acting strangely. After all, his lips were moving as if he was chewing, and his entire body was exuding happiness.

***

Meanwhile, in the Special Players Management Team.

[Player Minhyuk has completed the Hidden Piece: The One who Achieved Eden’s Impossible Territory Test.]

[The Food God’s Hidden Trial might appear depending on his next trial’s achievement level.]

“Team, Team Leader!” Lee Minhwa urgently called for Team Leader Park the moment an unexpected situation appeared in front of her. Hearing the urgency in her voice, Team Leader Park rushed over.

“Wh…what the hell?!” Team Leader Park could not contain the shock in his voice. That was because…

“What the hell is this?!”

…he was completely clueless about the situation. The same was true for Lee Minhwa and the other employees. None of them knew what this was about. So, they hurriedly contacted the Development Team’s Team Leader, Lee Seokhoon. Team Leader Lee Seokhoon rushed over the moment he received the call.

“Gasp… gasp…!?C…crazy…! Was what you told me true?!”

“What exactly happened?”

“...A system that shouldn’t be opened yet has been awakened.”

“What…?” Team Leader Park asked Team Leader Lee Seokhoon in doubt, not understanding what he was saying.

“The Maestro of Destruction, who should be around Level 550~630, should have been the one to originally receive Atlas.”

Team Leader Park nodded. This was a fact that everyone was aware of.

“The Athenae?Development Team predicted that Player Minhyuk would fight a battle against him at Level 600 to regain ownership of Atlas territory, a land that was originally under the ownership of the Food God. According to our predictions, the server integrations should start around that time too.”

According to the Athenae system operators, the Level 700 players would first appear around a year and a half, or even two years later. That was the original time frame that they expected the clash between Calauhel and Food God Minhyuk to happen.

“Only after Player Minhyuk challenged the farming trial and achieved a high score would that trial have a high probability of awakening. But,?that system is supposed to be under the?‘inaccessible’?stage.”

The system operators might have been the ones to create the settings, but there were still hidden systems that players could not access yet, these were systems in inaccessible stages. However, these systems would be released, one after the other at a later date, once the level of the players increased.

“So, what you’re saying is that this trial shouldn’t have appeared right now and it was supposed to be around one to two years later?”

“Then, what about the rewards…?”

“...The rewards are also things that shouldn’t have appeared and nor received at this point in time.”

‘Rewards that shouldn’t have appeared and nor received at this point in time.’

Team Leader Park rubbed his chin in thought. The value of artifacts that would appear a year later would be completely different from the ones that were already in the market right now. Back in Athenae’s?early days, unique artifacts were able to be sold at high prices, but just a year later, the value of these artifacts had already depreciated by thirty times their initial value. Of course, that was only natural. After all, the supplies and items back in the day were rare. But right now, something that should not be released yet was about to be released. That would pose a huge problem.

“Heavenly Beef…”

Heaven was a place that was hidden more deeply than the Demon World. And beef that came from that very place was actually offered as a reward.

Meanwhile, Lee Minhwa gulped as she spoke, “Heh… That, that Heavenly Beef… must be delicious, right?”

“That’s right. It must be delicious…?Huh?” Team Leader Park’s words went into a halt as he turned to look at Lee Minhwa. Lee Minhwa hurriedly schooled her expression the moment the two of them made eye contact. This was not the time to think those thoughts.

“I believe Player Minhyuk will do his best to somehow complete this trial and eat that beef.”

Then, Team Leader Park asked, “But, what do you think is the probability that Player Minhyuk has in completing this trial?”

Lee Seokhoon looked at the monitor solemnly and replied, “Two percent.”